12-bit 3.2 GS/s

The 743 is the Switched Capacitor Digitizer family, based on the SAMLONG chip and developed in collaboration with CEA/IRFU, with a good compromise between high sampling frequency (3.2GS/s) and channel density. It can record very fast signals from scintillators coupled to PMTs, Silicon Photomultipliers, APD, Diamond detectors and others, and save them with high efficiency and precision for advanced timing analysis.

The analog inputs are continuously sampled by the 1024 capacitive cells in the SAMLONG chip at a frequency that is software selectable among 3.2 GS/s, 1.6 GS/s, 0.8 GS/s, and 0.4 GS/s. Once the trigger condition is met, the capacitors are released, data is converted by a 12-bit ADC at a lower frequency and stored into a digital memory buffer. As the sampling and the analog-to-digital conversion are not simultaneous, a dead-time is introduced, during which the board cannot accept other triggers.

On-board charge mode allows for charge integration and fast histogramming. The acquisition can be in coincidence, majority mode and externally gated. Multiple boards can be synchronized to build up complex systems.

The acquisition is fully controlled through the WaveCatcher software by CNRS/IN2P3/LAL, which manages the settings, plots and saves waveforms and histograms, and includes advanced measurements (noise, time, rate). Libraries and demo software in C are available for integration and customization of specific acquisition systems.

743 family comes in two form factors: VME (16 input channels) and Desktop (8 input channels). The communication to and from the board is provided through the following interfaces: USB (Desktop form factor), VMEbus (VME form factor), and Optical Link (all form factors).